Power distribution modules or fuse blocks are commonly provided on utility vehicles such as tractors or off road vehicles for housing fuses under the vehicle hood or elsewhere on the chassis near the battery. The utility vehicle power distribution module may be connected to a positive battery cable, and may include an electrical bus bar to a plurality of electrical fuses for protecting electrical systems such as vehicle lighting and other power accessories from high current or power. The fuses may be strip or link fuses connected between pairs of fuse connection terminals which may be threaded studs.
Typically, 60 to 500 amp AMG/MEGA fuses have mounting hole pairs spaced apart by 50 mm on center or more, and 30 to 200 amp AMI/MIDI or ATM/MINI fuses have mounting hole pairs or other terminals spaced apart by 30 mm on center or less. In the past, different power distribution modules were typically used for the larger and smaller fuses, or the overall size of the module and location of fuse mounting terminals was based on the dimensions of the larger fuse. A smaller, more compact utility vehicle power distribution module is needed that can house larger and smaller fuses in the same housing with a smaller footprint because of space demands for other components such as emissions equipment.
In the past, utility vehicle power distribution modules have only limited entry/exit openings for battery cables. For example, the module may have an opening on one side for a cable that is connected to a large fuse or bus bar. It can be difficult to route battery cables around the module into the opening, especially where space is limited and the cables are relatively thick and nonflexible. As a result, it can be difficult to mount power distribution modules at some locations. A utility vehicle power distribution module is needed that reduces or solves the problem of routing battery cables into cable entry or exit openings, and without as many mounting limitations.